Where did you get your rabbit?

[Flick]

Stella, and Parker were rescues through Bunny Buddies in Houston.

First time I saw Parker was at the vet's office the day after he was rescued from a park. His ears were encrusted with ear mites and his left hind foot was crushed.

I picked Stella up from an owner who couldn't afford to take her to a vet. She was literally starving to death. Her incisors were so over grown, she couldn't eat.

She weighed 1.11 lbs.

After extensive multiple surgeries, Stella now weighs 4.3 lbs and has found true love with Parker.

 

[MyBabyBunnies]

My first 2 bunnies came from a friend who had 2 accidental litters. I got them very young so I've never had any issues with them. They were well socialized by me and I knew the care they got before coming to me.

My second 2 bunnies came from a breeder, one as a baby and the other as retired breeding bunny that needed a retirement home. The older bunny had teeth issues but that was unrelated to her previous situation, it was more of a breed/age thing.

My other 2 came from a shelter. And I have had issues with them. One of them brought pasturella into my herd and has infected all of them, I believe I know which it was as he came from a hoarder and was more likely to have underlying issues.

I'm not at all against shelters, especially if you are just looking at one or 2 bunnies that are already caged together, I'm only concerned about bringing shelter bunnies into my home if I already have healthy bunnies at home (but that is just due to my experience). Next time I get bunnies, I will likely be getting a pair of babies from a reputable breeder.

 

[Yurusumaji]

1) Where did you get your rabbit?
I got Michiko from a breeder who posted her on Craigslist because she was disqualified as a show rabbit.

2) Were there any challenges you blame on how you got your rabbit (like health issues from a pet store)?
No. Michiko has been amazingly healthy since day one.

3) If you were to get another rabbit, how would you do it?
I would likely get another rabbit from Craigslist or from a rescue.

I wasn't aware that Michiko was coming to me from a breeder, but I do know that it would not have influenced my decision. Michiko is an English Lop, my heart rabbit, and I felt so blessed that I lived near someone who was selling E-Lops when I knew I could afford to keep one. It was fate.

 

[MagneticLove]

1. I got Piksi from a petstore. He was the only one left to sell. i fell in love with him. he was always a very needy bun very velcro, always had to have pets and be the center of attention. he was also very very friendly with people.

2. Well i think his tumor might of been caused by heredity from a bad breeder but i dont know that for sure. He was a healthy bun until that point.

3. I think i will most def get an other bunny in the future but might be a long while form now. i might rescue a bonded pair or buy from a breeder. i just love baby bunnys so much and i like how having a single bun makes you more bonded with him/her (i think)

 

[jujub793]

my first introduction to rabbits was when my teenage daughter brought one home from the local Tractor Supply store around easter time. She and her boyfriend wanted a "pet" and so they brought this one home to our house. I immediately rejected the whole idea of this as we already had two cats and two ferrets and other assorted little Pets (newts, frogs etc)
It was no time at all that between shuffling this rabbit from his house to our house every other week, that i fell in love with this rabbit. She had no health issues and was as healthy as can be AND a total "people" bunny. And the fur!!! i LOVED the fur. After researching rabbits and breeds i come to find that our little Pepper was a standard rex rabbit and i was HOOKED. It was kind of ironic that this rabbit that i had totally rejected and had no interest in at first came to be "MY" rabbit. Since she came into my life i have become a total rabbit lover! Who'd a thunk lol. Sadly my precious had a hard time here despite the fact that she was well loved and spoiled. She and the ferret had "issues" because Pepper was a "alpha" bunny and did not back down when challanged, and she ultimately died from a wound sustained from the ferret. It was actually the medication from the vet that killed her, not the wound itself. But i learned so much from her that i HAD get another bunny....

Lily! I did research and research and more research on where to get standard rex rabbits in my area, i went to all the local fairs and got names and numbers and finally hit pay dirt. I found a breeder within a reasonable distance from my home. It was love at first sight with her. She was white and pink and cute all over!! Sadly Lily wasn't meant to be with us for long as she died shorly after i had her, (3 weeks or so). She passed from seizure...?

Ultimately i would love to get rabbits from a rescue but there are no bunny rescues in my area that i have been able to locate. So...off to the breeder i go. I am waiting for her newest babies to get old enough to leave their mama's, and the wait is killing me!!! So i live vicariously through all of you until that time!

 

[bunniekrissy]

Since I was a young child, I have gotten 4 rabbits from pet stores and adopted 3 from a shelter. Several of the pet store bunnies had health issues that may have been due to their likely bad background, though I can't say for sure.

I plan to purchase my next rabbit from a responsible breeder and from now on I'll be either adopting (shelter, someone who wants to rehome, or a rescue), or buying from responsible breeders.

 

[cirrustwi]

Along the way I've had rabbits that came from all sorts of backgrounds.

Timothy, my current bun, came from a breeder. I have 3 more on the way, all from breeders. Tim has always been healthy and I'd go back to his breeder any time. I've had good luck from breeders generally. I dealt with one breeder who had Hollands and AFLs. I took 2 AFLs from her, sort of as a favor, they both were a mess. They had to be shaved, which was an experience in itself, and they were thin under all their mats. One went into stasis from the stress of everything, he was the worst off to start with. He had seizures and by the time it was all over, he had lost his sight. But when it was all over, he was an amazing boy who was so friendly and wonderful.
(The doe was pregnant, but she somehow managed to have 6 beautiful, healthy girls who all went to wonderful homes. I still get photos of them.)

My first rabbit came from a reptile show. She was being sold as snake food. Daisy made me love rabbits and everything that goes along with them. I had 2 others from reptile shows. Daisy and Orion were healthy, Elvis (a Californian) had ear issues because the idiot who bred them picked all his rabbits up by their ears. The cartilage in his ears had been so badly damaged, they basically flopped and he was prone to ear infections. But I'd do it again just because to rescue them was such a great thing. It was so worth it.

I've had a couple of buns from pet stores. But I've not really had any problems with them, although, I've seen the horrors and heard enough stories. They weren't well socialized and that was a challenge...

I've gotten them from friends and from the Humane Society and a rabbit rescue. On the whole, they were pretty good.

I've actually been really lucky. I haven't had too many health issues, some, but not too many. And while some just weren't social, I recognize that like people and other animals, some just aren't as human dependent. I'm always leery of the pet store, but I also know that it's fairly impossible for a pet store to give their rabbits everything they need and honestly, as far as exercise and socialization, I've seen some breeders that are much worse then any pet store. So basically I just think it's hit or miss. So, on the whole, I'm not opposed to getting rabbits from anywhere.